1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of cooling semiconductor chips, and more particularly, to a multi-chip liquid cooled module and method.
2. Background of the Invention
Certain high-powered semiconductor chips operate at extremely hot temperatures, thus requiring the need for liquid cooling. Current cooling techniques generally involve mounting the chip package on a printed circuit board, and circulating a coolant over the top surface of the chip package. Another technique involves mounting the chip package over a hole formed in the circuit board. Coolant is then circulated under the bottom surface of the package through the hole. In both techniques, the coolant comes in contact with one surface of the package, thereby drawing heat away from the chip.
The prior art cooling technique has a number of disadvantages and limitations. Only one surface of the chip is exposed to the coolant. Thus, the amount of heat removed from the chip is limited. Each chip on a board that needs to be cooled must be separately mounted onto the board. This consumes a large amount of space on the board and makes the task of board lay out difficult. Lastly, the task of reworking the board (i.e., replacing defective chips on the board) is problematic. Replacement of a defective chip requires melting the solder used to mount the chip, removal of the chip, and board preparation for the resoldering of a new chip. All of these tasks are difficult on a densely populated circuit board.